Scroll back up to restore default view. LONDON (AP) — A U.K. newspaper has published more leaked memos revealing a British ambassador’s blunt assessments of the Trump administration, including one in which the envoy to Washington claimed President Donald Trump pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal to spite predecessor Barack Obama.In the May 2018 cable published by the Mail on Sunday, U.K. Ambassador Kim Darroch called Trump’s decision to abandon the international accord „an act of diplomatic vandalism, seemingly for ideological and personality reasons” because the pact „was Obama’s deal.”Darroch wrote the memo after then-Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson visited Washington in a failed attempt to persuade the United States not to abandon the 2015 nuclear agreement.He alleged the White House had no strategy for what would come after its withdrawal and „no sort of plan for reaching out to partners and allies.”The newspaper published new details from confidential diplomatic cables despite a police warning that making the documents public might be a crime.Scotland Yard is hunting for the perpetrator who leaked confidential diplomatic cables to the Mail on Sunday. Last week the newspaper published memos from Darroch describing the Trump administration as dysfunctional and inept.The publication of the ambassador’s unguarded views, meant for a small group of ministers and senior officials in London, cost him his job.Trump responded by calling Darroch „very stupid” and a „pompous fool” in a Twitter fusillade, and the White House cut off contact with the British envoy.Darroch announced his resignation Wednesday, saying „the current situation is making it impossible for me to carry out my role as I would like.”He remains formally in the post while a successor is chosen for one of Britain’s most important diplomatic jobs.British politicians and officials are embarrassed at the leak of Darroch’s frank — though widely shared — opinions about Trump. And they are angry that a British ambassador was forced to step down because of pressure from a foreign leader.Some also blame Johnson, who is likely to become Britain’s next prime minister, for refusing to publicly defend Darroch after Trump posted disparaging tweets about the ambassador for two days. Darroch has said Johnson’s silence contributed to his decision to quit.British officials have said they have no evidence that hacking was involved in the documents’ release, and that the culprit is likely to be found among politicians or civil servants in London.Rumors are swirling in government circles in London about who was behind the leak, widely seen as benefiting supporters of Brexit and Trump.The journalist who reported the cables, Isabel Oakeshott, is a strong supporter of Brexit and an ally of Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage, who also is Britain’s leading champion of Trump.Farage has accused Darroch of lacking enthusiasm for Britain’s departure from the EU and said he should be replaced with „a non-Remainer who wants a trade deal with America.”Police are investigating the leak as a potential breach of the Official Secrets Act, which bars public servants from making „damaging” disclosures of classified material. Breaking the act carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison, though prosecutions are rare.Contentiously, police issued a warning to journalists that publishing the documents „could also constitute a criminal offence.”Both Johnson and Jeremy Hunt, his rival in the race to be Britain’s next leader, defended the media’s right to publish. And the Mail on Sunday said publication was in the public interest.”Our readers across the globe now have important information about how Britain tried, but failed, to stop President Trump abandoning the Iran nuclear deal,” the newspaper said in a statement. „What could be more in the public interest than a better understanding of how this position was reached, which may have serious consequences for world peace?”

Ocasio-Cortez reminds Trump, ‘I come from the United States’ after the president suggests congresswomen of color should ‘go back’ home

Kadia Tubman Reporter,Yahoo News•July 14, 2019 Trump unleashes tweets aimed at Democratic congresswomen: ‘Go back’ to ‘broken and crime infested’ countries Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez lashed out at President Trump, who tweeted that she and three other congresswomen of color should “go back” to their “broken and crime infested” countries, pointing out that she was born in the United States.“Mr. President, the country I ‘come from,’ & the country we all swear to, is the United States,” Ocasio-Cortez tweeted Sunday.The freshman representative from New York, along with Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, belong to the group of progressive Democratic congresswomen that Trump referred to in a Sunday Twitter thread, saying, “Why don’t they go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came.”“So interesting to see ‘Progressive’ Democrat Congresswomen, who originally came from countries whose governments are a complete and total catastrophe, the worst, most corrupt and inept anywhere in the world (if they even have a functioning government at all), now loudly and viciously telling the people of the United States, the greatest and most powerful Nation on earth, how our government is to be run,” Trump tweeted.“Why don’t they go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came,” his thread continued. “Then come back and show us how it is done. These places need your help badly, you can’t leave fast enough. I’m sure that Nancy Pelosi would be very happy to quickly work out free travel arrangements!”

The women were all born in the United States, except for Omar, who became a refugee at age 10 when a brutal civil war devastated Somalia, a predominantly Muslim country in East Africa. Five years after entering the U.S., Omar was eligible for citizenship and in 2000 became a citizen at 19.“You are angry because you don’t believe in an America where I represent New York 14, where the good people of Minnesota elected @IlhanMN, where @RashidaTlaib fights for Michigan families, where @AyannaPressley champions little girls in Boston,” said Ocasio-Cortez, who has the same birthplace as Trump’s father. “You are angry because you can’t conceive of an America that includes us. You rely on a frightened America for your plunder.”Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images); President Trump (Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images)She continued: “But you know what’s the rub of it all, Mr. President? On top of not accepting an America that elected us, you cannot accept that we don’t fear you, either. You can’t accept that we will call your bluff & offer a positive vision for this country. And that’s what makes you seethe.”Omar, the first-ever Somali-American in Congress and the first hijab-wearing Muslim member of the House, also responded to Trump, tweeting, “Mr. President, As Members of Congress, the only country we swear an oath to is the United States. Which is why we are fighting to protect it from the worst, most corrupt and inept president we have ever seen.”“You are stoking white nationalism [because] you are angry that people like us are serving in Congress and fighting against your hate-filled agenda,” she added.Rep. Tlaib called for Trump’s impeachment in her response, and Pressley denounced the president’s tweets as racist, saying they came “as no suprise” as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids began across U.S. cities Sunday to detain undocumented immigrants.“On a day when ICE is carrying out cruel raids in cities across the country – creating yet more fear and trauma in our immigrant communities – it should come as no surprise that a man who has made it his goal to dehumanize and rip apart immigrant families would so brazenly display the racism that drives his policies,” the Massachusetts lawmaker said in an emailed statement to Yahoo News. “Congresswoman Omar, Congresswoman Tlaib, Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez and I represent four of the most diverse districts in America, and his attacks illustrate his disgraceful lack of respect for the millions of people we collectively represent.”While House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was accused by Ocasio-Cortez of “singling out” women of color in an ongoing feud between House progressives and the Democratic establishment over a border spending bill, the party leader also rejected Trump’s “xenophobic comments meant to divide our nation.”Pelosi defended the women in her camp, saying “When @realDonaldTrump tells four American Congresswomen to go back to their countries, he reaffirms his plan to ‘Make America Great Again’ has always been about making America white again.”

Demonstrators return to immigration jail after attack, deathAssociated Press•July 15, 2019Police kill man allegedly attacking immigration prison.;TACOMA, Wash. (AP) — Demonstrators returned to an immigration jail in Washington state a day after an armed man threw incendiary devices at the detention center and later died.Willem Van Spronsen, 69, was found dead Saturday after four police officers arrived and opened fire.Demonstrators returned Sunday to the privately run Tacoma Northwest Detention Center, KOMO-TV reported. The demonstrators were protesting the facility and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement roundups that were supposed to begin Sunday. There were about 100 people gathered outside the center, the television station reported.The facility holds migrants pending deportation proceedings. The detention center has also held immigration-seeking parents separated from their children under President Donald Trump’s „zero tolerance” policy, an effort meant to deter illegal immigration.The center’s operator, GEO Group, said in a statement it was aware of a „community gathering” Sunday. „We respect every individual’s right to use their voice and express their opinions,” the center said.Bullet holes riddled the scene Sunday, The News Tribune reported. Police searched Van Spronsen’s Vashon Island home, the Tacoma newspaper reported.Van Spronsen’s friend, Deb Bartley, told The Seattle Times she thinks he wanted to provoke a fatal conflict. She described him as an anarchist and anti-fascist.”He was ready to end it,” Bartley said. „I think this was a suicide. But then he was able to kind of do it in a way that spoke to his political beliefs. I know he went down there knowing he was going to die.”Van Spronsen was accused of assaulting a police officer during a protest outside the detention center in 2018, The News Tribune reported. According to court documents, he lunged at the officer and wrapped his arms around the officer’s neck and shoulders, as the officer was trying to detain a 17-year-old protester June 26, 2018, the newspaper reported.According to court documents, police handcuffed Van Spronsen and found that he had a collapsible baton and a folding knife in his pocket. Van Spronsen pleaded guilty to the charge of obstructing police, and he was given a deferred sentence in October, The News Tribune reported.Van Spronsen had worked as a self-employed carpenter and contractor, according to court documents. He was also a folk singer, playing shows on Vashon Island and around the Seattle area, The Times reported.

World

Dozens detained in Moscow as opposition demands to be included in vote

Dozens detained in Moscow as opposition demands to be included in vote

Russian opposition figure Ilya Yashin addresses his supporters at a rally in Moscow

By Vladimir Soldatkin

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Police in Moscow detained more than 25 protestors at a rally to demonstrate against a possible ban on opposition candidates running in elections to the Russian capital’s parliament.

Opposition leaders cried foul after Moscow’s election commission said most of their sponsored candidates failed to secure the required number of signatures to participate in the election.

The commission has yet to officially announce the list of legitimate candidates for the Sept. 8 vote to the 45-seat parliament.

Ilya Yashin, a critic of President Vladimir Putin, and several other activists had called for a meeting with the voters on Sunday, an event, which transformed into a march to the Moscow city mayor office and then to the headquarters of the election commission.

Yashin said earlier on Sunday the election commission’s allegation that many of the signatures supporting him were rigged was an „absolute fraud”.

A police spokesman said more than 25 people, including some organizers of the protest, were detained in the center of Moscow. „They have not responded to police’s command to stop their actions. They are being bussed to police stations for further inquiries,” a spokesman said.

The participants shouted anti-government and anti-Putin slogans, urging the authorities to register their candidates.

There is a history of anti-Kremlin activists being denied access to run for the parliament seats or presidential office.

Alexei Navalny, a prominent opposition leaders, was barred from running in the 2018 presidential election after officials ruled he was ineligible to take part due to a suspended prison sentence.

The Moscow city election commission was not available for comment on Sunday.

Epstein’s „Zorro Ranch,” worth $12 million, is in the hills outside Santa Fe and has a private runway for his plane, stables, and perfectly manicured gardens.

The office of New Mexico attorney general Hector Balderas confirmed it was investigating allegations against Epstein, and interviewing people who allege that they were victims.

Mr Balderas has been in contact with prosecutors in New York, where Epstein has already been charged and is awaiting trial.

Epstein, 66, was first convicted of underage sex offences in 2008 when he agreed a plea deal in Florida. He admitted a single charge of soliciting a minor for prostitution in exchange for a 13 month jail sentence, and registering as a sex offender.

Shortly after completing his sentence he bought the New Mexico ranch from the family of the late New Mexico governor Bruce King.

Under New Mexico law he was not required to register as a sex offender there. According to local reports Epstein did voluntarily contact the sheriff’s office in Santa Fe when he bought the ranch, alerting them about his conviction. But the New Mexico Department of Public Safety then told him he did not need to.

In a statement Mr Balderas said the fact Epstein had not been required to register as a sex offender in New Mexico was a „huge black eye for our state.”

He added: „New Mexico continues to lag behind the rest of the country in strengthening outdated and weak laws that fail to protect our children from abuse.”

Mr Balderas has not said how many alleged victims have been interviewed, or any details of what they allege happened.

In response to the New Mexico development Bradley Edwards, an lawyer for Epstein’s alleged victims, told CBS News: „There are plenty of people that ran in his circles who have information. If you have information, you observed something, you heard something, come and let us know.”

In 2015 a woman who claims she was a victim filed a legal case in Florida in which she claimed to have been abused at several locations, including the New Mexico ranch.

Epstein also owns a $77 million Manhattan townhouse and a 75-acre estate built on a private island in the US Virgin Islands.

Epstein has pleaded not guilty in New York to two charges including sex trafficking of minors. He could face up to 45 years in prison if convicted.

In the 1970s Epstein was a teacher at Dalton School, a prestigious school in New York. Former students told the New York Times his behaviour there „violated norms,” including turning up at a party where students were drinking.

Canada says another citizen detained in China amid row

China has banned Canadian agriculture products, sentenced two Canadians to death and detained three others since Ottawa arrested a top Huawei executive (AFP Photo/FRED DUFOUR)

Montreal (AFP) – China detained another Canadian citizen amid sour relations between the two countries, Canada’s foreign ministry said on Saturday, though the reason for the jailing remains unclear.

„Global Affairs Canada is aware of the detention of a Canadian citizen in Yantai, China,” a spokesman told AFP.

He added that „Canadian officials are providing consular assistance” but no further details could be disclosed due to privacy laws.

The detention follows Beijing’s jailing of two Canadians earlier this year after Meng Wanzhou, chief financial officer for Chinese tech giant Huawei, was taken into custody in Vancouver on a warrant from the United States.

However a source familiar with the latest detention said there is no indication it’s related to the cases of Canadians Michael Kovrig, an ex-diplomat, and Michael Spavor, a consultant.

The pair are facing espionage charges that Ottawa has called „arbitrary” and which have sparked questions over whether the allegations are a retaliation for Canada’s Huawei arrest.

China has also sentenced two other Canadians to death for drug trafficking and blocked imports of Canadian agricultural products.

It remains unclear if this latest detention was related to last week’s arrest of 19 people in a drug case centering on the local branch of a language school in Xuzhou, a city southwest of Yantai.

Among those arrested were seven teachers and nine foreign students, whose nationalities have not been specified.

The British embassy in Beijing on Friday said four of its nationals had been arrested in Jiangsu province where Xuzhou is located, without specifying if the arrests were related to the drug case.

Swiss-based Education First, which operates a chain of language schools in China, released a statement this week acknowledging the involvement of seven of its teachers in the drug allegations at one of its branches in Xuzhou.